A letter I received yesterday from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Division of Migratory Bird Management recalled how little duck hunting I did in Florida last year. Off the top of my head, four hunts – two decent Merritt Island trips, one dud of a Toho morning, and an evening Whistling Duck hunt in Sarasota County that was a ball. Oh, and a Super-Crappy Early Teal hunt on STA 3/4. So five FL hunts, total.

I know I shot more than this, but once ducks were divvied up between hunters wanting meat for the freezer or I actually remembered I volunteered to submit the wings, seven was all I produced. Pretty lame of me – especially considering the waterfowl parts I could have submitted from wildly successful Montana and Kansas hunts but on which neither I brought the requisite submission envelopes.

So, apologies, USFWS -I’ll try to do better this season.

The results of the Parts Collection Survey are not available yet, but if you check out their website, USFWS has other data-gathering activities happening right now. With cooperation from Ducks Unlimited, you can track the day-to-day reporting of the Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey. (Click here to read journals from DU.)

Also, on USFWS’ website are yearly results from the Migratory Bird Hunter Survey. You know that HIP card you fill out every year asking how many ducks you killed the prior year? That’s where this data goes. 3.5 million hunters provide this data and of that, names are collected from that sample for further information. It was last year that I filled out one of these questionnaires, I believe. You can check that out by clicking here.

Anyway, I come from a Public Administration background and studied hard about information gathering and how it sets public policy. I implore everyone who is asked to participate in these surveys to give as accurate and reliable information as possible. From this will structure how future hunting seasons are formed, in addition to keeping an eye on the health of our waterfowl and other migratory game birds.

Or, at least, do as I say – as I mentioned, I did a poor job of submitting information last year. Suppose I have to hunt more to keep my memory jogged.

About This Blog

Ian Nance is a lifelong resident of Central Florida with a passion for hunting and just about anything related. Associate Member of the Florida Outdoor Writers Association. Check back weekly for hunting stories, news, tips, and wild game recipes. Feel free to leave comments or e-mail topics you would like to see addressed here. Contact at inance880@aol.com or follow on Twitter @good_hunt